Clarke Cent. 57, Cedar Shoals 40

And considering the influx of fans which swarmed the Clarke Central campus on Saturday, the time of the game would have mattered little on how much room there would be for the crowd.

Want proof? Then consider this -- there were scalpers selling tickets outside James M. Crawford Arena at Clarke Central and more than 500 fans were turned away as the ''Sold Out'' signs were up by the end of the varsity girls game.

For the 2,500 people who were able to cram themselves inside the gym, they watched as the Lady Gladiators staked their claim to the Classic City with a convincing 57-40 win. The victory was Clarke Central's fifth straight in the series, something considered unprecedented just two years ago.

It wasn't too long ago the Lady Jaguars owned this rivalry, racking up an impressive string of wins during the 1990s. But last season, Clarke Central finally broke through, and the Lady Gladiators (17-6, 9-3 in Region 8-AAAA) haven't relinquished their hold on the city title since.

''(Cedar Shoals) had beaten us pretty bad in the past, and it feels good to turn things around,'' Clarke Central's Ganiyat Adeduntan said. ''Now that I'm a senior, it's nice to be able to leave this program with our younger players like Tomnika Gary and Mallory Wegmann.''

Adeduntan had a hand in helping to turn Clarke Central's fortunes in the series. The senior scored 26 points in Saturday's victory over the Lady Jaguars, including 14 in the second half as the Lady Gladiators transformed a 31-22 halftime lead into a rout.

It was a pleasant turn of events for Adeduntan, who admitted she had struggled with her shooting as of late. On Friday, she was only able to manage 13 points, but Saturday, she was able to pull up and hit short jumpers from the baseline and had success driving to the basket.

''Ganiyat looked really smooth,'' Clarke Central Cedricia Jones said. ''I told her before the game that I wanted her to look smooth when she played, and it paid off for her.''

While Adeduntan may currently be the top player in Northeast Georgia, she may soon pass that title onto Cedar Shoals' Ivy Smith. The sophomore was explosive at times on Saturday, and finished with 16 points.

''She plays extremely well,'' Jones said of Smith. ''She has improved every facet of her game since I saw her last. She handled the ball well and it was tough matching up with her on defense.''

Smith drilled a pair of 3-pointers to open the third quarter, helping the Lady Jaguars close the gap to 33-28. But that would be as close as Cedar Shoals (4-19) would get.

Smith was plagued with foul trouble, picking up three in the first quarter.

''When she got those three fouls early, it really took us out of our game plan,'' Cedar Shoals head coach Charles Turner said. ''Coach (Harry) Bufford wanted to get her out of the game and I told him we couldn't afford it. We just don't have a point guard who can handle the ball and run our offense like she does.''